Luxury consignment e-retailer The RealReal Inc. on Thursday announced it has hired former Walmart Inc. executive Jun-Sheng Li as its chief operating officer and former Amazon.com Inc. executive Len Eschweiler as its chief revenue officer. These are two new positions created by The RealReal.
The RealReal—No. 195 in the Internet Retailer 2017 Top 500—generated an Internet Retailer-estimated $184.5 million in online sales in 2016, up 30% from $141.9 million in 2015, according to Internet Retailer’s Top500Guide.com.
Li is tasked with managing The RealReal’s e-commerce operations by applying new technologies and processes that help it open and operate more e-commerce centers. (The retailer did not elaborate on what the processes or new technologies might be.) E-commerce centers are where its items are received, authenticated, photographed, picked, packed and shipped. Since its founding in 2011, it has sold and shipped more than 6 million luxury items, but declined to share a breakdown of the number of items it processes on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.
Jun-Sheng Li, chief operating officer at The RealReal
The RealReal says Li also will assist in opening new e-commerce centers as the business grows. It currently has two e-commerce centers, one in Secaucus, N.J. and another in the San Francisco Bay area, both totaling 300,000 square feet. With its continued growth, The RealReal plans to open another e-commerce center similar to how the current two operate but did not specify when or where that would occur.
Before joining The RealReal, Li served as senior vice president of e-commerce supply chain at Walmart (No. 3) for five years, where he oversaw the convergence of digital and physical sales. Prior to Walmart, he co-founded several companies in the supply chain and logistics management sector, including third-party logistics services company Transplace Inc. and cloud computing technology services company Adage SCM Technology and Services.
Eschweiler will manage the sales team, who find consignment clients and process and ship consignment items from locations across the U.S. to The RealReal’s two e-commerce fulfillment centers.
Len Eschweiler, chief revenue officer at The RealReal
At Amazon (No. 1), Eschweiler worked as general manager, director of commerce and payments for about two years, where he supported more than 2 million third-party merchants and sellers.
“As the company has grown so has the demand for a level of management who have had instrumental roles in growing and shaping multi-billion dollar businesses,” says Julie Wainwright, The RealReal’s CEO and founder.
In other e-commerce personnel news, digital commerce company Evine Live Inc. hired Mark Locks as executive vice president of product sourcing and business development. Locks will oversee the company’s product development pipeline.
Prior to Evine, Locks was president of global operations for clothing and accessories manufacturer Tiger J, where he drove the development of celebrity brands such as Serena Williams, Nicole Richie and Queen Latifah.
“Mark brings his considerable talent, experience and Rolodex to Evine, where he will oversee enhanced product development operations for new business opportunities,” says Evine CEO Bob Rosenblatt. “We have watched him develop strong brands and identities over the years, and we are thrilled to have him join the Evine family.”
Evine, No. 117, reaches more than 87 million cable and satellite television homes with digital shopping content 24 hours a day.
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